


Wilting

by Snowish



Series: Ask-Cagneycarnation Stuff [1]
Category: Cuphead (Video Game)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-16
Updated: 2017-10-16
Packaged: 2019-01-18 07:59:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12384132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snowish/pseuds/Snowish
Summary: What's this? Snowish wrote another thing for one of their blogs?? OH BOY!!!!This one is for http://ask-cagneycarnation.tumblr.com , explaining how Cagney sold his soul and what makes him be such an asshole in the present day.





	1. Betrayal

The heat in Cagney’s chest wouldn’t go away. His head wouldn’t stop throbbing. That’s what he got for screaming his head off, he guessed. Did plants like him even have hearts? He didn’t care about the answer, because he swore he felt a rapid pulse through his entire body.

All it took… Just a single stranger saying her name… He should have been over it by now! It was a long time ago!

But no. Upon hearing ‘Dracena,’ every ounce of anguish he had experienced way back then came flooding back. 

 

* * *

 

It was maybe six years ago at the most. He had two of the best friends in the entire world, and he couldn’t ask for anything more.

Lillian, a Lily of the Valley, was always so careful and quick to calm him down whenever he got too excited. Their smile could brighten anyone’s day. He liked how their trail of flowers resembled the ears of rabbits--they even moved like them, too.

Dracena was a Snapdragon, and seen as the mature one, even though she was only a couple of months older than the other two. The contrast of her ruby red petals and pale green skin was something people would often compliment her on. Cagney enjoyed hearing her stories about far-off places, hoping one day to get the courage to travel like her.

 

The three of them had been spending time in a quiet field, just relaxing in the cool spring air and watching clouds go by, when Dracena asked something.

“Cagney, you’d do anything to make it so we’d stay friends, right?”

Cagney took a moment to respond, noting her odd tone. It seemed more like she was just talking about Cagney and herself, but Lillian didn’t seem to notice. 

“Yeah, of course! I want us all to stay together forever!”

Dracena frowned at ‘us all,’ but continued talking as if he hadn’t mentioned it.

 

“Well, you’ve heard the rumors going around, right? That there’s this fearsome beast going out at night and attacking people?”

“Oh dear, yes.” Lillian cut in. “I’ve heard it’s very dangerous.”

“Well,” Dracena continued, shooting Lillian a sour look, “I was thinking, what if we stopped it? Not only would be save everyone, we’d cement our bond with a major event such as that!”

“Aren’t we fine the way we are?” Lillian asked in a quiet voice. “What if we get hurt?” They looked very worried, and Cagney couldn’t help but feel the same way. When Lillian had doubts, they were often true.

“You don’t have to go if you don’t want to,” Dracena replied, perhaps a little too quickly. “It can just be me and Cagney.”

“I do wanna help people, but… I don’t think the whole ‘cementing our bond’ thing wouldn’t really work if Lillian wasn’t there.” Cagney answered.

 

He could have sworn Dracena muttered something under her breath, but she quickly smiled again and turned to Lillian.

“How about this: Tonight, when the monster is supposed to be running around, we set up a trap. You guys can wait at a predesignated spot, and I’ll lure the beast to you!”

Lillian thought this over a bit. They didn’t doubt Dracena’s ability to stay out of trouble, so perhaps it wouldn’t be a big risk… It would definitely be safer than if the two inexperienced flowers were to try anything.

“Okay. What do we have to do?” They finally asked, nodding.

 

* * *

 

“Any sign of her?” Cagney asked, squinting as he looked around. 

The sky was overcast, and no moon slipped through the clouds, making it very difficult to see. The two flowers were waiting at the bottom of a small canyon that snaked through the field, a large net spread between them.

 

“I’ll chase the monster towards you,” Dracena said when she handed the net to them a couple of hours earlier. “Then you throw this over it!”

 

“Nothing ye--” Lillian was about to respond, but then suddenly looked up. Several meters above them, at the edge of one side of the canyon, a loud snuffling sound was heard.

“I thought she was gonna chase it through the valley, not down the cliff!” Cagney cried, getting his side of the net ready.

“Too late to do anything about it now,” Was all his friend said in response.

 

The two didn’t have much time between getting ready and the arrival of the monster. As soon as the net was taut between them, a shape dropped down, landing with a loud THUMP only a yard or so away.

 

Because of the darkness, Cagney could barely make out the shape of the beast. It was large, quadrupedal, with a long snakey tail. Cagney could have sworn he saw a pair of wings flex slightly, but he became distracted by a pair of glinting yellow eyes--the only thing that stood out in the dark.

“NOW!” Lillian yelled, snapping Cagney to his senses. The two heaved the net up and into the air, straight for the monster, and--

It missed. Almost as if the creature knew what they were doing, it easily swerved out of the way, letting the net fall pathetically to the ground. Cagney felt a chill through his body upon realizing their attempt had failed.

The creature snarled, but in their moment of shock, the two flowers could have sworn it sounded like a chuckle.

 

“RUN!” Cagney squeaked, pulling up his roots and barrelling off down the stretch of the canyon. It would eventually rise to meet level ground, they just had to outrun the creature, so--

“CAGNEY!” Came Lillian’s scream, making him stumble before stopping and turning around.

The creature had Lillian pinned, and they were doing everything they could to stop its maw from getting closer to their face. Cagney knew he had to do something, and fast, before it was too late.

 

“GET OFF OF THEM!” He yelled, running back towards the pair. The creature looked up at the sound of his voice, but did not move. It snarled as if to warn him to back off.

But Cagney refused to. He got closer and closer to the creature, fully intending to slam into it in hopes of throwing it off.

Well, he slammed into it alright, but it barely did anything. The creature stood its ground and merely shoved Cagney away with a swing of its long neck. 

Cagney was thrown back a few feet, slamming his head into the rocky canyon wall. He could feel his vision beginning to swim, and tried to stay upright.

Lillian yelled as they used their powers to bring up a giant thorny root from the ground. It smacked into the creature’s leg, sending a deep scratch across it, before being pushed away as well.

 

Cagney couldn’t remember what happened after that. By that point, his vision had gone dark.

 

* * *

 

 

It was late in the afternoon the next day, and Cagney was still feeling numb. 

Lillian hadn’t survived. When he came to, they were… 

 

He didn’t even want to think about it.

 

Cagney stared into the open air, not really thinking about anything, when he heard footsteps. He slowly looked over, only to find Dracena a few feet away. She was holding her arm in a dejected fashion, looking sad. Something told Cagney this expression wasn’t genuine, but at the moment, he didn’t really care.

“I heard what happened. I’m sorry.” She whispered.

“Where were you?” He asked. He didn’t want to make it sound accusatory, but a hostile tone escaped him before he realized it. 

“I lost track of it. I thought it had gone somewhere else, not towards you guys.” Dracena replied. “I spent the whole night looking for it, and when I got back, it was already morning, and…” She trailed off, but Cagney was quick to assume the rest. Not many people lived around the field, but word did travel fast.

“It’s not your fault.” He finally mumbled. 

He went back to looking at nothing, and Dracena was quiet for a few moments before decided to sit down beside him.

 

“What happened to your arm?” He asked, finally noting she was still holding on to it. 

Dracena coiled up, looking a little surprised. It seemed she hadn’t expected him to question her about it, and was trying to come up with a response.

“It’s just a little sore.” She finally said. “Pulled it while chasing after the creature, I guess.”

“Well here, let me take a look at--” He began, but Dracena pulled sharply away.

“No, it’s fine! It’ll heal on its own!”

“But wouldn’t you want it to heal a little faster? I’m pretty good at that kind of stuff.”

“Nope! I’m fine! Just fine!”

“Dracena, just let me see--”

Cagney had grabbed her arm, pulling it towards him, and he froze when he saw what she had been covering up with her hand. 

 

A jagged mark went down her arm, and Cagney couldn’t believe it. Though it had been dark the previous night, he had been close enough to see the scratch the creature had received from Lillian’s attack.

The scratch on Dracena’s arm was the exact same shape.

“You…” He began, looking up at her in utter horror. “You’re the creature?”

Dracena remained quiet, slowly taking her arm back from him. She avoided his eyes, but seemed to be more angry than anything.

“It’s an old family ability. Passed down through the Snapdragons.” She mumbled.

“At least tell me it’s like… A werewolf or something where you can’t--”

“Stop acting so innocent, Cagney!” She suddenly spat, leering at him. “You know damn well I hated Lillian! So yeah, I lied about chasing the creature.”

“That means you… You…”

“I  _ enjoyed _ tearing them to shreds.” The poison in Dracena’s voice was suffocating.

 

“Why?” Was all he could ask.

“Why? WHY? YOU KNOW WHY!” She yelled.

“NO I DON’T!” Came his sharp response, and both he and Dracena were startled by his volume. He didn’t care, though. His breath was quick and his hands were shaking. Knowing what she did… It was complete betrayal.

Dracena stared at him for a while, trying to decipher whether or not he was telling the truth. When it became clear to her he didn’t, her shoulders sagged, and she spoke in a quiet voice.

“I care about you, Cagney. They didn’t. I stopped everything before they could hurt you. Sure, the methods were a little extreme, but… I’m your friend. That’s what friends do, right?”

She carefully took his hand in hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. Cagney stared at her, but his eyes were hollow and his expression was blank.

 

He wasn’t sure how to answer her question.


	2. A Deal

A year had gone by. Cagney thought that meant things were okay. Things were slowly going back the way they used to be.

Except this time Lillian wasn’t there. It was just Cagney and Dracena.

 

At least Dracena seemed to respect he needed his alone time. When he felt that strange urge to just get up and move somewhere--anywhere but here--she would make herself scarce. Cagney didn’t always feel right around her, so he often gave in to said urges. Anything to get away from her for a while.

Though it was supposed to be one of the warmest springs in years, he barely felt it as he walked down one of the few dusty roads in the area. Every once in a while he would pass somebody going the other way, and maybe nod or mumble a greeting, but for the most part he just kept walking.

That is, until he passed a pair who had stopped in the middle of the path.

 

“Oh, come on, Bea, don’t tell me you believe in that kind of stuff!”

“I’m not sayin’ I’ll do it, it just seemed like a pretty interesting thing to know!”

The pair, a couple of chickens, seemed to be having an intense discussion about something. Cagney didn’t intend to overhear on purpose, but as he walked by, more of what they were saying piqued his interest.

 

“It’s the Devil, anyway, when is he EVER in a good mood? But they say if you do catch ‘im in one, you can make a deal! Most of the time you have to wait for his offer or something.”

The Devil? Cagney had always heard about him growing up. He was dangerous and to be avoided at all costs, often making deals with people in order to lay claim to their souls. 

Usually the Devil would wait until somebody was vulnerable, swooping in and making an offer they couldn’t possibly refuse. But then there were the few who dared to approach him first. None of those stories had happy endings.

 

“It’s not like I have a reason to seek him out!” The chicken known as Bea scoffed as the pair began to leave Cagney’s range of hearing. “I’m comfortable with my life! No problems here!”

Wasn’t she lucky. 

Cagney stopped walking, reflecting on how much his life had changed since Lillian died. Saying that he wasn’t comfortable was an understatement. He felt like he had lost an important part of himself, and after what Dracena said, he began to question just how important it had really been. Was Lillian truly as bad as Dracena made them out to be?

 

If only he could ask them himself.

Wait. Could he? Maybe there was a chance that…

It was a terrible idea. He shook his head and scolded himself for even thinking such a thing. No plant worth their roots would do something like that.

But at the same time… Maybe it would ease up all the doubt and insecurity he had been feeling. Surely it wouldn’t hurt to try?

Cagney glanced over his shoulder, seeing that the two chickens were now just faint spots in the distance. After a few moments, he made his choice.

 

* * *

 

“So, to what do I owe the pleasure of meeting, my friend?”

Cagney didn’t hear the question at first. There was fire everywhere, crackling loudly and putting him on edge. The flames weren’t anywhere near where he was standing, but being a plant, he was always twice as cautious around it than most people would be.

 

“Isn’t it, uh, a little obvious? I came to make a deal.” He finally managed to stammer out his reply.

“Well, DUH!” The Devil snapped back, spreading his arms wide. Though his posture on the throne was very relaxed, he shot a look at Cagney, making the flower try to seem even smaller than he already was.

“What I wanna know,” he continued, still grinning, “Is just what that deal is. What could you possibly want enough to come here on PURPOSE? You’re either very desperate, very dumb, or both.”

 

He had a point. Cagney decided it was his desperation that forced him on this path, seeing as every other part of him was screaming ‘DON’T DO IT!’

But this was pretty much his only chance to find out the truth. To find out whether or not Dracena was lying.

“I want my friend… Lillian Valedia… To come back.”

When Cagney finished speaking, the Devil pulled a scowl, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. Had Cagney suggested something too big? It did seem like a bit of a stretch, but--

“That type of request… Is a very big deal on all sorts of levels. I can’t just revive somebody when asked! Do you KNOW how many deals I’d be making if that were the case? Sure, it’d be a lot, but I would be LOSING souls!”

Cagney shrunk back a bit more. He knew it was too much to ask. He probably shouldn’t have even come here, what was he--

 

“But,” the Devil continued, raising a hand. “It’s possible. It just requires a very special set of conditions.”

“What do I need to do?” The words came out of Cagney’s mouth before he could even think them. He was shocked at how much it seemed like a reflex.

At this, the Devil cackled, picking up his trident and swinging it in the air. A puff of smoke appeared in front of Cagney, revealing the long piece of parchment.

“Let’s get the boring stuff out of the way first. In order to make sure I’m not losing too much should you fail to make the payment, I will be taking your soul as collateral.”

Well, pretty much every deal with the Devil involved giving up one’s soul. Cagney wasn’t surprised this was any different.

 

“BUT,” The Devil continued. “Your soul itself isn’t the payment. No, we’re doing an exchange of sorts. If I’m giving up a soul, I need to get one in return!”

“Can’t you just take mine, though?” Cagney couldn’t help but ask.

The Devil was quiet, staring intently at Cagney, then suddenly broke out into raucous laughter.

“I mean, if that’s what you want! Maks things a whole lot simpler for you, I suppose! But then I would just collect it right here and now, and your little friend would be free to run off into the world again. I’m getting the distinct feeling that’s not your intention.”

Cagney didn’t want to admit it, but the Devil was right. He needed to confront Lillian, and he certainly wouldn’t be able to do that if he were dead.

 

“I thought so,” Came the Devil’s voice once Cagney didn’t respond. “So, if you want to live as well, there’s only one other option: You need to kill somebody.”

“Wh-What? I-I can’t do that!” 

“You either find a soul to replace them, or your little friend here will never leave this place!”

The Devil once again swung his trident, causing a wisp of blue flame to appear. The flame hovered in the air before getting slightly larger, forming something else: The shape of Lillian.

 

“OKAY!” Cagney found himself shouting. “Okay. I’ll do it.”

“Then sign.”

A pen appeared before Cagney, and in his desperation, he grabbed it and quickly scrawled his signature. The second he lifted the pen, both it and the scroll vanished, and the Devil cackled.

“Very well then! You have until…” The Devil produced a pocketwatch, dangling it in the air and glancing at its face. “Let’s say until midnight tomorrow! Just do the deed and come straight back here! If you’re not sure who’d be best, how about that other friend of yours? She killed this one, after all. Revenge would be perfect!”

Cagney nodded, not realizing half of what the Devil was saying, but the reality of what he had just done was finally sinking in. He was too stunned to realize he had already turned around and walked out the door, heading in the direction of Inkwell Isle Three. 

He had no other choice now. He had to kill somebody, or lose his own soul. The Devil had suggested Dracena, but was that really worth it? What if it turned out Lillian was just as bad as Dracena had said?

 

Then all of this would be for nothing.


	3. Chapter 3

“Cagney, there you are!” Dracena cried once he appeared in her line of sight. She hurried over and wrapped him in a big hug, but he didn’t reciprocate it.

Cagney had returned home a few hours ago, and only just now decided to look for Dracena. With the sun dipping below the horizon, he knew he only had a few more hours to make a choice.

“Sorry, I was doing something.” He mumbled, pulling away from her.

“Well, so long as you’re safe and sound…” She said, more to assure herself than anything else. “Do you want to hang out or something tonight?”

Cagney didn’t answer her, still caught up in his own thoughts. 

“Cagney?” Dracena asked, making him snap to attention.

 

“I… I don’t think so, Dracena. Actually, I was wondering if we could just talk for a bit? I have some questions.” He finally answered.

Dracena wrung her hands a bit, on edge because of the way he was acting. 

“Sure,” She said, her tone sounding as if nothing was wrong. “What is it you want to ask?”

“Why are you so sure Lillian didn’t care about me? They were a great friend.”

Dracena pulled her shoulders up, not expecting to be interrogated about that subject again. She would have loved to change the subject, but a quiet determination surrounded Cagney that told her she probably shouldn’t.

“You never saw how they acted when you weren’t around.” She said in a low voice. “They said things behind your back, and made me promise not to say anything to you.”

Cagney shook his head.

 

“I need you to tell me something you can prove.” He insisted.

“They were very good at hiding things, Cagney, they were a master liar and--”

“Maybe YOU’RE the liar!” He spat, pointing an accusing finger at her. “I remember how you’d speak to them sometimes!”

“Only because I knew how they were--”

“AND INSTEAD OF DOING THE RIGHT THING, YOU KILLED THEM!”

 

Dracena didn’t respond, and lowered her gaze in defeat. Her eyes widened when she caught sight of his hand, and she grabbed it, pulling it closer to her face. 

“You have an ink smudge on your hand…” She noted, looking up at him. She leaned in a bit to smell the air around him, then recoiled back. “And you smell like smoke and brimstone. Cagney… Don’t tell me you went to--”

“So what if I did?”

“Why in the--What--What did you ask him for?” Was all she could get out.

Cagney remained silent, glaring down at the ground. Dracena’s behavior didn’t exactly convince him that she was entirely innocent.

 

“You’re trying to get them back.” She said flatly upon realizing the truth.

“Yeah, because they didn’t deserve it.” He snarled, taking his hand back. “And now I’m starting to think the price is pretty fair.”

“Don’t do anything you’ll regret, Cagney…” She warned, moving back a little. He could see her fingers were slowly turning into claws. She was starting to transform.

“NOT LIKELY!” He yelled, charging at her.

 

* * *

 

Cagney wasn’t sure how long they had been fighting. The sun was long gone, and there was barely any moonlight--just like that fateful night a year ago.

Whenever he attacked Dracena--be it with a flurry of seeds or a tangle of vines--she leaped out of the way. Her dragon form was quick, he would give her that. Must be nice to not rely on being rooted to the ground for so long.

With another yell, sounding more like a strangled croak with how sore his throat was, he extended his arm towards her.

 

That was his mistake.

 

In one quick motion, Dracena grabbed his arm in her jaws, pulling him out of the ground and towards her. She whipped her head around in various directions, sending him colliding with the ground a few times. 

Cagney thought he was going to be sick, but then something gave way, and he was flung several yards from Dracena.

He rolled over and tried to pick himself up, but only managed to rise a foot or so off the ground. Wondering why, it took him a moment to realize his right arm was missing, dripping the bright green blood that was so common in plants like him.

 

With only one arm supporting him, he shakily looked up, seeing that Dracena was now towering over him, his other arm still in her jaws. Tears started to fill his eyes.

Dracena did not look sympathetic at all. She dropped his arm to the ground, then began to change back into her normal form.

“You could have just said something…” He gasped, shaking a little. The arm wound wasn’t dangerous. He could regrow limbs. It would just take a while. That didn’t mean it didn’t hurt, however.

“Well it’s a little late for that, now isn’t it?” Dracena snarled. She was back to her usual form, glaring coldly down at him.

“I…” Cagney began, but he couldn’t find the words. He didn’t know what he was supposed to say.

“It’s also too late for apologies.” Dracena added. “Can’t have a friend who thinks I’m worth killing.”

 

She surged toward him, palms out as if to push him backwards, but he rolled to the side. He heard her stumble, and then shriek as she fell.

Turning, he looked over the edge of the canyon, watching her figure fall. Had they really been that close to the edge? 

He turned away before he could see or hear her hit the bottom, eyes squeezed shut. The canyon itself was about 40 feet deep--It was very unlikely somebody would survive that sort of fall. 

 

Cradling his wounded arm, Cagney slowly got to his feet, breathing heavily. 

She was gone.

He had done it.

 

That meant all he had to do now was…

* * *

 

“Well, well, well, look who made it back! And about ten minutes to spare, too!” The Devil cackled as Cagney shuffled into view. He didn’t seem to care that the flower looked like he had seen better days (and he certainly had).

“She’s gone.” Cagney said in a quiet voice, looking at the ground. His face was still wet with tears, but at least his breathing was regular once again.

“Oh really? Well, ain’t that swell!” Came the Devil’s reply, but he hadn’t moved from his spot on the throne. He was grinning mischievously (which was to say, more than usual) and looking as if he was waiting for something.

“Well? Can’t I have Lillian back?” Cagney asked. “I did what you asked, I killed somebody.”

 

The Devil, unable to keep himself contained any longer, began to laugh. It was an annoying, mocking laugh, and it made Cagney go still. 

“Actually, no you didn’t. Read the fine print, kid.”

With the same puff of smoke as before, the contract appeared before Cagney, and he squinted to make the words out.

“Says there that in order for you to get your friend’s soul back, you had to kill somebody else. Thing is, you didn’t kill anyone! Sure, that other flower fell, but you didn’t trip them or push them or anything, you just rolled outta the way! You didn’t even know the edge was right there!”

“That means…” Cagney began quietly, starting to shake.

 

His train of thought was interrupted by a loud ringing noise, forcing him to look up. The Devil brought out the same pocketwatch he had seen earlier, which was making an awful clamor.

“That means time’s up!” The Devil chuckled, closing the watch so it went silent. “I’ll be taking your soul now!”

“B-But, there has to be some-something I can do! I tried to--”

“NO IFS, ANDS, OR BUTS, BUB! THAT CONTRACT’S BINDING!”

 

“Cagney…” 

Cagney looked up, seeing the same blue shape of Lillian floating beside the Devil. 

“What did you do?” They gasped, looking fearful.

“He FAILED.” The Devil answered, snapping his fingers. 

The soul of Lillian suddenly began to glow bright orange, and they started to scream. The flames surrounding them were quick, but their crackling still couldn’t silence their voice.

 

“And now it’s your turn.” The Devil said, turning to Cagney once the soul was gone and pointing his trident at him. 

Cagney knew he only had a few seconds to react. He had to make a break for it, or else he would end up just like Lillian.

Without thinking, he reached with his good hand and snatched the contract out of the air, turning around and darting for the exit.

He heard the Devil give a ferocious roar behind him, but he did not dare look back. He was already over the threshold and running far, far, away from the Devil’s lair.

 

“I WILL SEND MY LACKEYS TO FIND YOU, YOU MISERABLE WEED!” Came the Devil’s booming voice. “THEY WILL DRAG YOU STRAIGHT INTO THE FLAMES SO YOU WILL BE NOTHING BUT _ASHES_!”

But Cagney just kept on running.

 

* * *

 

_ No more friends. No more trusting people. They’ll turn on you. Like Lillian did. Like Dracena did. _

_ They’ll send you straight to the Devil and you’ll never see the light of day ever again. Some of them could be working for him! They’ll get close to you and then when you have your guard down they’ll strike! _

_ You don’t NEED friends. You’re just fine on your own.  _

_ Everyone is out to get you. Everyone knows what you did and they hate you. _

_ Both of your friends are dead and at least one of their deaths is your fault. _

_ Nobody deserves to get close to you, you’ll just break everything all over again. _

_ I DON’T WANT TO DIE! _

 

The thoughts zipped through Cagney’s mind, one after another, a constant loop. He let them, because he needed SOMETHING to prove he was still alive.

He shouldn’t have been able to do that. Stealing a contract right in front of the Devil? Talk about a death wish. 

For now he just had to lay low for a while… Yeah. That was it. He’d stay out of sight and make sure nobody saw him. When things seemed to settle down and the coast was clear, he would try going back to his old life again. At least, what he could replicate from it.

 

“Don’t need nobody,” He mumbled, retreating a bit farther into the shadows, still clutching the contract tightly in his hand. “Cagney only looks out for Cagney.”


End file.
